Shiloh Hendrix criminal trial underway in Minnesota after viral altercation with Somali family backed by NAACP

The trial of Minnesota mom Shiloh Hendrix, 37, began in Rochester this week with father Shire Jimale of a young boy accused of stealing from Hendrix's bag, who she then called the n-word in return, took the stand. Hendrix is charged with two misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct stemming from the April 2025 incident at the Roy Sutherland Playground at Soldiers Field Park.

The Jimale's testimony, through a Somali translator, against Hendrix reportedly contradicted what he had told investigators during his first interview in 2025. He had not gone to police about the incident until after the video went viral on TikTok, 10 days later, contacting the NAACP, which then told him to reach out to police.

The group launched a fundraiser following the viral video and the father testified that the NAACP "said they had such an amount of money for me." The NAACP closed the fundraiser after another family fraudulently claimed to be the one involved in the incident.

Hendrix's attorney Brian Karalus alleged that Jimale was financially motivated in his claims. In court, he said he put the money in a trust for his son. Jimale said in court that he didn't know about the money until after the NAACP had directed him to speak with police. 

The NAACP responded to the video in May 2025, with local NAACP President Wale Elegbede saying "We will hold this person accountable for this despicable racist act against a child." 

Jimale, father of the then-8-year-old autistic boy, took the stand against Hendrix. He revealed that his son is autistic and even wears a "device provided by the Rochester Police Department because of his risk to wander off," reports the Post Bulletin.

Minnesota has an usually high rate of ausism within the Somali community, however, operators of government-funded autism service providers have been convicted of fraud for a benefits scheme. The provider would get Somali families to sign their children up for services they did not need, bill the government for those services, and send kick-backs to the families.

Jimale, a Somali immigrant, spoke through an interpreter, telling the court his son "does not follow any rules because he does not understand rules." He also said that the youngest of the three children he brought to the playground that day soiled himself amid the confrontation.

In his testimony,  he claimed he thought Hendrix would hit his child. Hendrix's attorney pointed out that this is not what he first told investigators last year. Under questioning, Jimale said that in his first interview with police, he did not say he was afraid Hendrix would hit his son, but that in the second interview, the following day, he did say that.

Hendrix approached the child to retrieve what he had taken from her diaper bag, which she put on the ground in the play area while watching her 18-month-old son. As to that theft, Jimale testified that his "son is curious and will take things to explore objects and 'test them' with his mouth,'" reported the Post Bulletin.

In court, Jimale claimed through an interpreter "If I was not standing there, with that level of (Hendrix’s) intensity, I do believe she would have struck that child." When asked why he only contacted police after the video went viral, he said "Initially it didn't look like a thing you would rush to 911 with. Like an emergency."

Prosecutors rested in the case on Wednesday and defense attorneys begin arguments on Thursday. At issue for the jury is whether or not Hendrix's words could be considered "fighting words," meaning that her speech would incite violence. Saying slurs is not a crime and is not a prosecutable offense unless it is believed to fall into this other category. Hendrix could face 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted.

As the incident unfolded in the park in April 2025, a third party, @dahab.soomaale, a Somali man, took video of Hendrix and posted it to social media. That video showed Hendrix saying the n-word multiple times as Soomaale harassed her. Hendrix was doxxed and a fundraiser was undertaken for her, raising nearly $850,000 to date. Soomaale said Hendrix was guilty of "hate speech," which is not a crime in America, and said "you can be recorded for that. We'll see what the internet has to say about you." He posted the video to his TikTok page.

In her fundraiser, Hendrix said "I recently had a kid steal from my 18-month-old son's diaper bag at a park. I called the kid out for what he was. Another man, who we recently found out has had a history with law enforcement, proceeded to record me and follow me to my car. He then posted these videos online which has caused my family, and myself, great turmoil. My SSN has been leaked. My address, and phone number have been given out freely. My family members are being attacked. My eldest child may not be going back to school. Even where I exercise has been exposed."

"I am asking for your help to assist in protecting my family," she continued. "I fear that we must relocate. I have two small children who do not deserve this. We have been threatened to the extreme by people online. Anything will help! We cannot, and will not live in fear!" She and her family have since moved from Rochester.